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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kid · fine · ground · spring · bound · present · bark · pound

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  13. That was ________________ to happen.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. spring — of water
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. kid — to tease
  5. ground — the earth
  6. spring — a coil
  7. bound — obliged
  8. ground — crushed
  9. present — a gift
  10. pound — a weight
  11. spring — the season
  12. pound — for dogs
  13. bound — certain
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. pound — to hit hard
  17. bound — tied together
  18. ground — a position
  19. present — the time now
  20. bark — to shout
  21. fine — all right
  22. fine — high quality
  23. present — there
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com